A Brief History of the

The first reference of a library appeared in The Alamosa Journal

on March 20 when the City of Alamosa donated a room in City

Hall to the Alamosa Public Library and Reading Room

Association, which at that time was supported by membership

fees and quarterly dues.

Members of the Current Events Club and other town women

volunteered their services as librarians, keeping the reading room

open every afternoon and every evening, except Sunday.

VERY COZY

ON THE SHELF JULY 10, 1902

Excerpt from The Alamosa

Journal, September 4, 1902:

“Are you a member of the

Alamosa Library and Reading

Room Association? If not you

should be. Dues, $1 for

admission; 25 cents for every

quarter. Books may be taken

out during the following hours:

8:00 to 12:00; 2:00 to 5:00. Open

at all times.”

November 27, 1902

LIBRARY NOTES

A neat and serviceable hat rack,

compliments of Kinch & Company, is an

addition appreciated by patrons of the reading room.

The public library, like the sugar factory, is an

assured success. It is as great a necessity,

serving the culture wants of the community, as

the latter serves its existence needs.

Donations of complete files of magazines

have been made the library, and Mr. Chris

Wallrich has given lumber for shelving. This insures the proper housing of current literature,

which will be most increasing value to the

institution.

The committee on choice and purchase of

books will have at its disposal a neat little fund in

the near future. Patrons are requested to leave

with the librarian titles of leading literary works

they would like to have added to the shelves.

September 4, 1902

LIBRARY NOTES

A number of new books are to be ordered

soon. The public library now boasts 110

members and owns about 260 good books. Following are the papers and magazines to be

found on the tables of the library:

Denver Times, New York American Journal,

Kansas City Star, Chicago Inter Ocean,

Commercial Eagle, New Orleans Picayune,

Colorado Springs Gazette, Alamosa Courier and

Independent Journal, San Francisco Examiner

and others. The magazines are: Woman’s Home

Companion, Ladies Home Journal, Collier’s

Weekly, Success, The Interior, Public Opinion,

Brown Book of Boston, Black Cat, Strand,

Bookman, Life, Munsey, McClure, Century,

Leslie’s, Forest and Stream, Sports Afield,

Pearson’s and many, many others.

The library used to write a regular article in the Alamosa Journal informing the public about new

additions to the library, upcoming events and public meetings.

ON THE SHELF April 2, 1903

April 2, 1903

LIBRARY NOTES

The reading table is well patronized.

Books are taken out every day.

Since last writing, new shelving has been

put in for magazines, which adds to the

neatness of the library and convenience of

the librarian.

Early in 1908 a movement was started to obtain a Library

building. Mr. George S Darley, Presbyterian Minister, and

the Reverend Harrison, rector of the Episcopal Church,

were appointed to choose a site for the Library building.

The city was awarded $6,000 from millionaire philanthropist

Andrew Carnegie on March 21 for the construction of a

public library to be supported by tax dollars.

On May 6, 1908 a motion was passed by the Town Trustees

that the vacat lots beside the First Baptist Church on 4th

and State be selected for the new library.

The Alamosa Carnegie Library was dedicated on February 24 at the corner of 4th Street and State Avenue.

BIG SPENDER

Nov. 25, 1835 – Aug. 11, 1919

Andrew Carnegie was a

Scottish American industrialist

who led the expansion of the

American steel industry in the

late 19th century, and is often

identified as one of the richest

people and Americans ever.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Carnegie ultimately gave away $60 million to fund a system of 1,689 public libraries across the United States.

(Source: Wikipedia)

The Alamosa Carnegie Library was

dedicated on February 24 with a

whopping 1,500 books ready to be

checked out.

Mrs. Bertha E. Roberts was appointed the

first librarian with a monthly salary of $45.00.

The first book officially cataloged was on

February 8, 1910, titled Oliver Wendell

Holmes’ The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table.

NICE DIGS

ON THE SHELF February 8, 1910 “The library is an ideal

place in which to spend an evening,

and the library habit is not a bad habit to

take.”

“Library Notes”, The Alamosa

Journal, April 15, 1910

December 21, 1916

OUR LIBRARY

“A jolly good booke

On which to looke

Is better for you Than much golde.”

Among the generous Christmas presents

donated to our library for books at this time is

as follows:

The Elk Lodge, $25; Alamosa Lodge, No.

44, A. F. & A. M., $25; Eastern Star, $20;

Current Events Club, $10. The P. E. O. and

Delphian Clubs also gave generously considering that they are young clubs.

This amount will no doubt purchase a

number of much needed books, under the

suggestion and supervision of our worthy

librarian, Mrs. Roberts.

March 8, 1912

LIBRARY ENTERTAINMENT

The Library Association gave an afternoon

tea Wednesday for the benefit of the

Carnegie Library. A musical and literary program had been prepared for the

occasion which was greatly enjoyed by all.

Mrs. Lewis Beyle, Miss Wilson and Miss Ella

Menke entertained the guests with selections

and the high school played several

selections. The Duets by Professor Camp and

wife, and Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Kilpatrick were

heartily encored. Among those who took

part in the musical program were: Mesdames

Norton, Hansen, Ireland, Thompson, Goodall,

Mullins, Shull, Moffat, Reier, Hayt, and Misses

Denny, Lowe, Reed and Jennie Ginn.

Pleasing refreshments were served at the

close of the program.

The library committee realized $37 from

the affair.

The library used to write a regular article in the Alamosa Journal informing the public about new

additions to the library, upcoming events and public meetings.

The library moved to its newly constructed home on 4th Street

in 1961 and was referred to as the Alamosa City Library or the

Alamosa Library. TIME TO MOVE

Crowded conditions of the

Alamosa Carnegie Library

have reached a point that

the library board has

announced it must build a

new library building.

Office space is used for

storage and walls, floors

and shelves are crowded

dangerously close to each

other.

GOODBYE OLD FRIEND

In December, 1962, the

Alamosa Carnegie

Library was demolished

and the location was

turned into a municipal

parking lot.

The library became a “regional

library” by entering into several

service contracts with the counties

of Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla and

Mineral.

The City Council agreed to officially

change the library’s name to

Southern Peaks Public Library, a.k.a.

Southern Peaks Library, in honor of

the new regional library.

Costilla County withdrew from the

regional library system due to lack of

funding. Additional funding difficulties

among the remaining counties

occurred over the next several years.

The library’s first recorded involvment with the

annual Summer Reading Program, themed

“Meet Your Friends in Fantasyland”.

The program began on June 18 and ended July

30, with a special Surprise Day happening on

August 6.

Alamosa’s chapter of the Friends of the Library

is created.

Friends are a group of patrons who work to

uphold the mission of the library and to create

paths between the community and the library.

Anyone can become a Friend. They are

always in need good volunteers to help with

hauling or unpacking boxes, setting up tables,

sorting, shelving, advertising and book

collection, or recycling.

Don’t want late fees?

Become a Friend of the

Library.

REMEMBER THESE? HELLO KITTY

Paper cataloging and manual check

out systems had been used for decades

before the library upgraded to doing

everything on computers some time in

the mid to late 1990s.

OH, THE NOSTALGIA

(photo by Ruth Heide, 1989)

WHERE IT’S AT

The library goes digital…almost.

Automation of cataloging, overdue billing,

interlibrary loan, serials check-in, daily statistics,

and petty cash accounting begins.

It would still be another few years before the

library would not only do everything completely

through computers, but set up an entire

computer lab for public use.

SO HI-TECH

Jean Campbell, works on the

computer at Southern Peaks

Library, where she handles the

overdues.

(photo by Ruth Heide)

BE KIND, REWIND

The library begins its video loan program. More than

200 educational VHS videos were purchased

through a grant. Check out time was three days

with at $1.00 charge for repair. Senior citizens in

nursing homes were allowed to rent videos at no

charge.

ON THE SHELF FEBRUARY 22, 1989

Southern Peaks Public Library

staff Dorothy Wilson, Roberta

Elfrink, Deborah Nichols and

librarian Sue Ann Elkins.

(photo by Ruth Heide)

The 4th Street library’s interior was completely

remodeled with new carpet, desks, tables,

chairs, shelves and wall art. NICE TABLES

NICE PLACE jshaffner.wordpress.com

Childrens’ Storytime has been a very important part of our library’s

long, lustrous history from 1916 to today, and it’s still going strong.

Storytime

ONCE UPON A

TIME…

The Friends of the Library published its first literary and art magazine Messages from the Hidden Lake.

8 VOLUMES & COUNTING

“Place, Nature, Hope, Loss, Growth, Imagination - these themes surface in the poetry, prose, and artwork collected here from writers and artists of all ages with a connection to the Southern Peaks Public Library of Alamosa, Colorado.”

In April, the library changes its name to the

Alamosa Public Library as part of the move into

the new City Hall complex in November that

same year.

The old Southern Peaks Library Building became

the Alamosa Police Department.

YOU ARE HERE

To inform, educate, and culturally enrich the population of Alamosa County and the San Luis Valley. We offer a

broad range of library materials and information services as part of a larger library community with whom we

share resources. Our helpful and expert staff provides quality service and programs in a welcoming environment.

We encourage lifelong learning, knowledge through self-education, and the joy of reading!

OUR MISSION:

Visit our website for more

photos and information:

www.alamosalibrary.org

Library Manager, Salai Taylor, initiates a valley-wide Little Free Library program. Several of the free libraries were built

by Paul Patterson and there is currently a total seven in the city of Alamosa.

The Little Free Library is a worldwide movement focused on providing free access to books by using small “libraries” located in convenient areas in local communities. Their

motto is “Take a book, return a book.”

HORRAY!

LET’S READ

(photo by Ruth Heide)

(photo by Ruth Heide, 1989)

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October 2, 1902 – Alamosa Journal LIBRARY NOTES

No small effort has been made by the number of citizens of Alamosa and vicinity to give to the public a library and reading room. That the literary movement in Alamosa is a success is already assured, but the

greater the effort the greater the interest and the more complete the success. Everywhere in this wide-awake country, of this dawning literary age, are being rooms for the comfort of the great mass of people who are anxious to get the latest as well the more substantial thought from the broad and expanding field of literature. Let us keep abreast of the times; let us not follow in the rear; let every loyal citizen think something, say something for the benefit of one of the

most noble of all enterprises, the founding of a permanent and 20th century library and reading room in Alamosa, so that when we are gone our posterity may find an inheritance without a statutory will to be contested and spoils to be divided. In order to offer an opportunity to all, the library association will give, in the Oliver, October 24th, a literary and musical entertainment, and ask all of the people of the city and elsewhere to be present in both body and

mind. Communication.

Slideshow by Judith Boyd Alamosa Public Library 2017